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the ground or straighten the canes entirely. Nature will do 

 that if left alone for 10 days or two weeks. We like to un- 

 cover just as early as we can after the danger of a light frost 

 is over. I have even had small shoots half an inch long, and 

 it doesn 't have any bad effect. 



The fertilizing is one of the first things in the spring. 

 Just what you use depends on the growth that your canes 

 have been making. If our canes are on fairly good land, we 

 like to have them make about a six-foot growth of cane. 

 We have found it necessary to apply anywhere from 700 

 pounds up, perhaps, in some extreme cases on the poorer 

 parts of the land, 1500 commercial fertiziler of 3-6-8 or 3-8-10, 

 varying the potash and phosphoric acid. We have always 

 mixed our own commercial fertilizers for this work, and as 

 times have changed, we have had to rely on different sources 

 for the elements. We used nitrate of soda for the nitrogen, 

 and sometimes some tankage. Last year, we had but little 

 acid phosphate for source of phosphoric acid. I know some 

 land had not received any stable manure for 15 years before 

 the berries were set on it, as the land was taken up from 

 pastures and never had been under cultivation at any time. 



Of course we cultivate as often as we can from the day 

 they are uncovered. We cut them back in the spring usually 

 a third at least. We do not practice cutting back on the 

 summer canes, because if we cut back during the growing 

 time, we will get a branching cane, and it is hard to cover. 

 We find the branching canes are always bad, because they 

 grow so stiff they are liable to break, but if we cut them in 

 the spring down to about three feet, we don't hurt them. 

 Then they send out the long, lateral branches that come 

 from near the ground and from which we get our finest 

 berries. Cutting them back delays the ripening a little. If 

 we want a few early berries, we get them on the slim end 

 tips, but they are not worth much. 



We have had an awful lot of experience with picking. 

 There used to be a time that we could take our two-horse 

 team and single wagon and go into the village two miles 



